8-inch/55-caliber gun: Difference between revisions
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==Ships mounting 8"/55 caliber guns== |
==Ships mounting 8"/55 caliber guns== |
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[[File:USS Helena (CA-75) firing 8-inch guns.jpg|300px|thumb|right|<center>The [[heavy cruiser]] {{USS|Helena|CA-75}} fires her [8"/55 caliber Mark 15 guns at enemy forces ashore on the [[Korean Peninsula]] during the [[Korean War]] (1950-1953).</center>]] |
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Revision as of 20:06, 21 September 2013
8"/55 caliber naval gun | |
---|---|
Type | Naval gun |
Service history | |
In service | 1925–1975 |
Used by | United States |
Wars | World War II Korean War Vietnam War |
Production history | |
Variants | Mk 9, Mk 12, Mk 14, Mk 15, Mk 16 |
Specifications | |
Barrel length | 440 inches (11 m) bore (55 calibers) |
Shell | 335 pounds (152 kg)[1]A.P. 260 pounds (118 kg)[2] H.E. |
Caliber | 8 inches (20 cm) |
Muzzle velocity | 2,500 feet per second (760 m/s)[1] |
Maximum firing range | 30,050 yards (27,480 m)[1] |
The 8"/55 caliber gun (spoken "eight-inch-fifty-five-caliber") formed the main battery of United States Navy heavy cruisers and two early aircraft carriers. United States naval gun terminology indicates the gun fired a projectile 8 inches (203 mm) in diameter, and the barrel was 55 calibers long (barrel length is 8 inch × 55 = 440 inches or 11 meters).[3]
Mark 9
These built-up guns weighed about 30 tons including a liner, tube, jacket, and five hoops. A down-swing Welin breech block was closed by compressed air from the gas ejector system. Loading with two silk bags each containing 45-pounds (20 kg) of smokeless powder gave a 260-pound (120 kg) projectile a velocity of 2800 feet per second (850 m/s).[1] Range was 31,860 yd (29,130 m) at the maximum elevation of 41 degrees.[1][4]
Mark 12
These simplified built-up guns eliminated hoops to reduce weight to 17 tons. The breech mechanism was similar and loading two silk bags each containing 43-pounds (20 kg) of smokeless powder gave a 335-pound (152 kg) projectile a velocity of 2500 feet per second (760 m/s).[1] Each gun could fire about four rounds per minute. Maximum range was 30,050 yd (27,480 m) at the maximum elevation of 41 degrees.[5]
Mark 14
These guns were similar to Mark 9, with the same shell weight and maximum range,[4] with a smaller chamber and rifling twist increased from 1 in 35 to 1 in 25 in a chromium-plated bore.
Mark 15
These guns were similar to Mark 12, with the same shell weight and maximum range, with the smaller chamber of the Mark 14 gun.[5] Useful life expectancy was 715 effective full charges (EFC) per liner.
Mark 16
These self-loading guns with lined monobloc construction and vertical sliding breech blocks weighed about 20 tons. Semi-fixed ammunition (projectile and powder case handled separately) with 78 pounds (35 kg) of smokeless powder gave a 335-pound (152 kg) projectile a velocity of 2500 feet per second (760 m/s).[1] Each gun could fire about ten rounds per minute. Useful life expectancy was 780 EFC per liner. Range was 17 miles (27 kilometers) at the maximum elevation of 41 degrees.[1][6] This gun was modified for the experimental Major Caliber Lightweight Gun.
Ships mounting 8"/55 caliber guns
Ship | Gun Installation[1] |
---|---|
USS Lexington (CV-2) | Mk 9 guns in four 190-ton twin turrets |
USS Saratoga (CV-3) | Mk 9 guns in four 190-ton twin turrets |
USS Pensacola (CA-24) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in two 190-ton twin turrets and two 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Salt Lake City (CA-25) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in two 190-ton twin turrets and two 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Northampton (CA-26) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Chester (CA-27) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Louisville (CA-28) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Chicago (CA-29) | Mk 9 guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Houston (CA-30) | Mk 9 guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Augusta (CA-31) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS New Orleans (CA-32) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 294-ton triple turrets |
USS Portland (CA-33) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Astoria (CA-34) | Mk 9 guns in three 294-ton triple turrets |
USS Indianapolis (CA-35) | Mk 9 (later Mk 14) guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Minneapolis (CA-36) | Mk 9 (later Mk 15) guns in three 294-ton triple turrets |
USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37) | Mk 12 guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS San Francisco (CA-38) | Mk 12 guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Quincy (CA-39) | Mk 12 guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Vincennes (CA-44) | Mk 12 guns in three 250-ton triple turrets |
USS Wichita (CA-45) | Mk 12 guns in three 314-ton triple turrets |
USS Baltimore (CA-68) | Mk 12 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
CA-69 | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
Canberra | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Quincy (CA-71) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Pittsburgh (CA-72) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Saint Paul (CA-73) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Columbus (CA-74) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Helena (CA-75) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Oregon City (CA-122) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Albany (CA-123) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Rochester (CA-124) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Bremerton (CA-130) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Fall River (CA-131) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Macon (CA-132) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Toledo (CA-133) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Des Moines (CA-134) | Mk 16 guns in three 450-ton triple turrets |
USS Los Angeles (CA-135) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Chicago (CA-136) | Mk 15 guns in three 300-ton triple turrets |
USS Salem (CA-139) | Mk 16 guns in three 450-ton triple turrets |
USS Newport News (CA-148) | Mk 16 guns in three 450-ton triple turrets |
USS Hull (DD-945) | Mk 16 gun in one 86-ton single automatic turret (8"/55 caliber Mark 71 gun installation) |
See also
Weapons of comparable role, performance and era
- 203mm/50 Modèle 1924 gun French equivalent
- 20.3 cm SK C/34 Naval gun German equivalent
- 203 mm /53 Italian naval gun Italian equivalent
- 20 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval gun Japanese equivalent
- BL 8 inch Mk VIII naval gun UK equivalent
- 8"/55 caliber Mark 71 gun
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Campbell 1985 pp.127-131
- ^ http://www.hnsa.org/doc/ordnance/pg056.htm
- ^ Fairfield 1921 p.156
- ^ a b DiGiulian, Tony (27 April 2011). "United States of America 8"/55 (20.3 cm) Marks 9, 10, 11, 13 and 14". Navweaps.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2011. Retrieved 2011 07 21.
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suggested) (help) - ^ a b DiGiulian, Tony (7 February 2008). "United States of America 8"/55 (20.3 cm) Marks 12 and 15". Navweaps.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2011. Retrieved 2011 07 21.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "New Cruiser Packs 8 inch Automatics" , May 1949, Popular Science detailed illustrations of Mark 16
- Campbell, John (1985). Naval Weapons of World War Two. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-459-4.
- Fairfield, A.P. (1921). Naval Ordnance. The Lord Baltimore Press.